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Trend in school shootings leads Norfork schools to arm some employees

Josh Dooley, Baxter Bulletin
Published 10:00 p.m. CT Aug. 7, 2018

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High school History teacher Kevin Bodenhamer, left, and elementary school principal Deanna Klaus will be armed with pistols when the new school begins. Norfork School District will have six armed employees on the district campus after they completed a 60-hour training course.(Photo: Josh Dooley/The Baxter Bulletin)Buy Photo

"Things aren't the way they used to be. This campus used to be open. The doors would be propped open, parents would come and go. But, times have changed, so we've had to change."

That's what Norfork School District Superintendent Mike Seay said about the way this country is now with school shootings becoming common, and the efforts his district has made to improve security, including arming six people.

The district sent surveys to parents outlining potential steps the district could take to improve security for students and district personnel. The results indicated those who responded to the survey were 80 percent in favor of arming district personnel.

"The people of this community expect us to protect their children, they trust us to do that," Seay said. "This is just one more tool to accomplish that goal."

It won't be just teachers that are armed, administrators, transportation, maintenance and other personnel may be armed. Teachers will have their bullet resistant vests and pistols locked in a safe in their classrooms.

The only two people on the district's campus who will openly carry pistols are the school resource officers. Other district personnel will carry their weapons concealed.

Norfork Elementary School Principal Deanna Klaus and high school History teacher Kevin Bodenhamer both took the 60-hour course and will be armed when students come back for the new school year.

Experienced weapons handlers

Seay said part of the selection process for deciding who would be armed was determining who had prior experience with firearms.

"We wanted people who had experience with firearms," said Seay. "Just having that experience, we felt, would be a positive as far as safety is concerned."

"I started hunting when I was a little kid," Klaus said. "You know, I did the typical progression, you start with a BB gun then move on to rifles and shotguns. I've always been a hunter."

Klaus also has significant experience with pistols. She also holds a concealed carry permit.

"My family is completely comfortable with me being armed at school," the principal said. "They know this will help keep me and the students safe so they're all for it."

Bodenhamer also has led a life that's included firearms from a young age. He however, doesn't have as much pistol experience as Klaus does. The history teacher bought his first pistol about a year ago.

"You know, we travel to major metropolitan areas, places like Little Rock and Springfield. You hear the stories of the things that happen there," Bodenhamer. "Plus, our little area is seeing some things we didn't used to see, unfortunately."

Klaus is appreciative of the training district personnel recently received and says it opened her eyes somewhat when it comes to reality, versus what one sees in the movies or on television.

"It surprised me how quickly we all got comfortable with moving through the buildings and checking and clearing. At first, we were very animated, like you see in the movies," Klaus said. "By the end of the week, we were much more fluid and smooth, less animation."

Hitting home

One of the first active shooter scenarios they went through had Klaus searching a first-grade classroom. It was that experience where things really hit home for the long-time educator.

"There was a closet in a first grade classroom and I had to open it and clear it," the educator recalled. "I just thought what if a kid has hidden in there and I open the door and I see movement and I just fired and that was a kid that was hiding, not the shooter.

"That just makes you really, really, really careful about firing that weapon, you know. You do not want to, I mean it's just, that was a little touchy," Klaus added. "It made you realize how serious what you were doing really was."

Bodenhamer, Like Klaus has spent more than two decades as an educator. He too has faced the "what if' thought of potentially having to fire his weapon in defense of his students and colleagues."

"I've taught here for 23 years here at Norfork and things sure have changed since 1996," said the teacher. "We've come now to the point where we might have to protect our kids. Could you shoot, if it's a former student and they're shooting, could you shoot back.

"That plays with your brain, with your heart, so you have to find a way through it. For me, I just thought hey, you're coming in to hurt my kids, to hurt my family, to hurt me. Here, at this school, we're going to defend every single person in it. I hate that it's come to that."

Another piece of the puzzle

The district has hired a new school resource officer. Curtis Meinzer, a retired law enforcement and military employee, will serve at the district's elementary school. Throughout his career, Meinzer has gone through a significant amount of training handling weapons.

He too went through the training with the other district personnel. With his background, Meinzer had the ability to make judgments regarding the skills his fellow district employees picked up during the course.

Meinzer was impressed with the instructor, the curriculum and said he felt good about working with his fellow employees should trouble come their way.

"I would have no problem going into a building with any one of them," Meinzer said of his classmates. "I was watching them because I want to know who I'm going in with.

"I knew Billy (Billy Cox the high school resource officer) had training but I knew these folks did not. But, they all did well, they all qualified the first time on the range. Nobody was trying to be Rambo and they had good muzzle discipline."

Final thoughts

Seay said arming staff was just one step the district took to improve safety on the district's campus.

"We had 25 different things we did to improve safety in our schools. This was the last step we took," Seay said. "We hope we don't ever need to use this training, but we absolutely wanted to be prepared."